


Forgiving Nate (Life Is Strange)

by Believemeitsover



Series: An Abundance of Nathan's [1]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Arcadia Bay (Life is Strange), Blackwell Academy (Life is Strange), Cheating, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Game: Life is Strange (2015), Heartbreak, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Maxine "Max" Caulfield Still Has Powers, Mild Sexual Content, Mild Smut, Multi, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Post-Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Rewind Powers (Life Is Strange), Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:35:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23935435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Believemeitsover/pseuds/Believemeitsover
Summary: Max sacrifices Chloe to save Arcadia, and she sees Nathan Prescott in a new light.
Relationships: Maxine "Max" Caulfield & Chloe Price, Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price, Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Nathan Prescott, Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Warren Graham, Nathan Prescott & Chloe Price
Series: An Abundance of Nathan's [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1725322
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	Forgiving Nate (Life Is Strange)

**Author's Note:**

> A drabble based on a tumblr prompt I found (@spoonraider) 
> 
> Let me know if the smut scene should be included, and if I should keep going with this concept or write a collection of unrelated drabbles. Hope you enjoy ! :3

The snow is falling softly around Blackwell Academy early in the morning. Scattered across the grounds outside, there are couples, trios and loners stalking miserably through the generous coating of snow the weather has bestowed upon them. It's 8:15 am, Max Caulfield is pulling a light brown cardigan around her shoulders in preperation for her first class, watching the traveling students from her window. The ache for her camera to be in her hands is throbbing.

The ache is weaker lately however, and Max doesn't want to think about why. She glances over at the bag her camera is in. She considers taking it, but once again decides she won't need it until photography in the afternoon, if she even attends. 

There's an expected knock at the door.

"You ready Max Attack?" It's Warren, on time as always, to walk with Max to the cafe, and then to her first period. Only a week before she'd get butterflies in her stomach upon hearing that knock, and now it's been replaced with a terrible guilt that's formed a boulder in her gut. 

Max checks the mirror that she might correct any stray hairs or blotchy patches, then grabs her coat and joins Warren in the hallway. He greets her with a warm and patient smile while she locks her door, then dives in for a hug as soon as her hands are free.

"Warren!" Max gasps when he sweeps her off the ground, spinning her around enough times to make her dizzy. 

"Tomorrow's the last day until break!" He exclaims happily. "Aren't you excited?" 

Finally, he puts her down. She has to brace one hand on the wall for a moment in order to wait for the world to stop spinning. 

"Oh, I'm sorry Max," says Warren, realizing her state. Concern coats his voice, making warmth rise in Max's neck and cheeks. She waves him off to insist that she's fine, and after a moment longer she recovers. 

"It's alright," she says still catching her breath. "Got big plans?" 

Warren's good mood is so apparent he's basically humming with joy. Max worries he might burst if not allowed to share his holiday spirit with her. 

"Mom's coming home this Christmas," he says with a grin so wide it cracks his face in half. "We haven't spent a Christmas together since I was fifteen, and..." 

Max raises an inquiring brow. "And?" She encourages. 

"Well... She's been looking forward for a chance to meet my new girlfriend," he admits shyly.

Max's heart starts slamming in her chest. The secrets she's been hiding within her since Chloe's death and the arrest of Mark Jefferson and Nathan Prescott, as well as the secret from the prior week begin to well up inside of her. 

She takes a deep breath of fresh air when they step outside. It's cold and sharp as it hits her lungs, causing her eyes to water and her cheeks to start stinging. 

"I'm actually going home for break, sometime this weekend," Max lies with virtually no thought whatsoever. The eass of which the words fall off her tongue mortifies her, but what she finds even more bothersome is Warren's unofficial use of the "girlfriend." There's a lump forming in Max's throat. _Has he been telling people that we're dating_? She wonders, panic bubbling inside of her. 

Warren doesn't have time to poke holes in her story as he's suddenly sent sprawling forward into the snow. Max jumps to the left of the walking path, startled. She watches as an extremely distraught-looking Victoria Chase races clumsily through the snow. She's heading for Principal Wells' office, and it looks as though she's come from the boy's dorm. 

_She saw, too,_ a little voice whispers inside of Max. She is frightened because she knows in her heart that it's true. 

Finally, Max shakes herself out of her daze and rushes to help Warren up out of the snow. He's already on his knees pulling himself upright, so Max settles on helping him dust the snow off his coat and hat. 

"Are you alright?" She asks, "I dont think she meant to knock you down." 

Warren brushes snow off his knees before putting space between himself and Max. She senses his discomfort and finds it troubling, but simultaneously finds herself relieved for th distance. Maybe he'll close himself off from her enough that he might forget his fantasies of them being in a relationship. She tries to offer him a smile, but is met with a cold scowl. 

"There's something you're not telling me," he states matter of factly. 

"There are lots of things I don't tell you, honestly," she lashes out her response with a child-like forse. It catches even her off guard, and she can't imagine what kind of crazy imagery it's put in his head. 

"Is that right?" He says angrily. Then without another word, he storms on ahead without her.

For a moment, Max simply stands, completely dumbfounded. She can't deny that her feelings for Warren aren't quite what he hopes they are, but she feels wrong upsetting him in this manner. Max isn't known to be a heartbreaker, but then again Max has only ever had one other person's heart in her hands to break before Warren's, and she's been gone six months now.

Max is about to push it all from her mind and head to class, when _he_ catches her eye. He's standing next to the totem pole, and if Max hadn't been standing in place as long as she has, she would've missed him. 

There's at least twenty yards distance between them, maybe thirty. Despite this Max can clearly make out Nathan Prescott beckoning for her to join him. She knows where he'll lead her - they've done this three times since he made Max aware of his return to Arcadia Bay. 

"I've seen the way you look at me, Maxine," he had growled in her ear the first time. He caught her alone, sneaking a cigarette in the parking lot ten minutes before curfew. Nathan is the only who knows about Max's new tool for coping with stress, she made him promise not to exploit it for she's unbearably embarrassed. After a brief explanation of his bail arrangement and several brutal fights with his father, Nathan requested Max's company in the junkyard. Someone - perhaps Nathan himself - has put a small heater in the shelter, or as Max called in her head, Chloe's safehouse, to combat the bitter elements of the dull December surrounding them. 

Then he had cupped her face in one of his hand, the other was secured around her wrists. He kissed her then, without warning, and she had wanted him to. It's eating her alive inside. He kissed her then, and then...

_And then..._

Max had all but completely forgotten about Warren until afterwards. She can hardly stand to look at herself ever since. 

Still, as if on autopilot, Max is already drifting across the lawn towards her dirty secret. She has a sudden disturbing thought: _I enjoy this._

She does, immensely. In the last week, Nathan - or Nate as she's dubbed him - has shown her a side of intimacy and risk that she had never experienced before in her life. Reminiscing their last few "dates" causes her an eruption of butterflies. She feels her hands becoming clammy and she practically hums with excitement as she follows Nate away from Blackwell and into the snow, into trouble. 

It's usually about a twenty minute walk from Blackwell to the junkyard, but the snow proves itself an obstacle and the time is nearly doubled as a result. Nonetheless, they arrive before either of them starts shivering too badly. As soon as they step into Chloe's aluminum safehouse, Nate has her up against the wall with his lips on hers. 

Max melts into his touch without hesitation. He helps her with the zip of her coat and relishes in the feeling of his cold hands searching greedily across her body for any access to bare skin. 

"Did you miss me, Maxine?" Nate murmurs into her collarbone in between his persistent nipping and kissing. She nods and lifts a hand to grab a fistful of his hair. 

"I love it when you're eager, baby," he claims. He lifts he into his arms with ease keeping her pinned against the wall. It's his favourite place for her, and it's Max's favourite place to be. 

"I'm going to make you scream, little girl." 

*

Nate made well on his promise. Now they sit curled on an uneven assortment of coats, hats and gloves. The quilt that Chloe left behind before the storm is thrown over them lazily. Max is laying on her side, admiring her current view. Nate lay on his back, lips slightly parted, blond hair sticking to his forehead from sweat. His chest rises and falls heavily, still a little out of breath it seems. Max smiles happily to herself and kisses his cheek gently. He smiles as well, turning his head to look his lover in the eyes. 

"God I love this," he says and lets out a satisfied sigh. "You're just so beautiful Maxine, and you're mine." The last part comes out in a low growl that Max is slowly becoming accustomed to. She wonders idly if she should be concerned with the way Nate talks as if he owns her, but she knows that deep down she loves it also. She can't help but feel a little disheartened though. 

"You're doing it again," she says. 

"What?" 

"You're smiling with your mouth but now with your eyes, and it's terrifying." 

Nate scoffs. "Max, please," he says, but she isn't sure what he's pleading for. 

Max starts fidgeting with with the edge of the quilt anxiously. 

"What's wrong, dollface?" 

"Warren and I... We aren't dating, not really. So why do I feel so guilty?" 

Nate considers this. He purses his lips and lightly brushes Max's cheek with his thumb. She finds herself wondering - not for the first time - if he feels jealous of Warren.

After a moment he says, "I think it's because of her, not him."

Max can't control the shudder that racks through her body. Nate pulls her close to his chest in response, probably thinking her to be cold. _Only emotionally_ , she thinks. To be with guy Chloe was involved with just a mere few weeks before that same guy... 

"Oh my god," Max gasps, reality setting in for the first time. 

"What is it?" 

Max doesn't answer. She throws the quilt off of her naked body and begins go dress hastily. "What the hell is wrong with me!" She cries mostly to herself. 

"Baby, please!" Nate begs. He stands up and grabs her arm, once again pulling her close to him. 

"I-I... I... " Max begins to sob. She buries her face in her chest, soaking him in. She relishes the feeling of his warm embrace, having all but completely fallen in love with it within the last few days. 

"We have to stop this... It was... you did this..." she feels Nate tense around her. 

"It was an accident," his voice is barely a whisper. It sounds almost as if he might cry. "Max don't do this..." 

"I'm sorry..." 

She stands on her tiptoes and kisses him hard and deep. He pulls back at first, then holds her fast and returns the kiss passionately. 

She keeps him like that, distracted and heartbroken, so that he won't notice her lift her hand above their heads and use her power for the first time since she let Nate fire at Chloe in the bathroom. 

She opens her eyes and she's back in her room, laying on her bed. She checks the time. 8:12am. Outside, she sees no snow on the ground and knows with certainty that she has turned time back to before Nate's bail. 

"Do it right this time, Max," she says to herself. 

As she dresses once again, watching her classmates wandering outside, fighting tears all the while. She knows in her heart she did the right thing - Nathan Prescott committed manslaughter, and he should be held accountable. Despite this, she longs for his company. Since saving Arcadia Bay from the devastating storm that had threatened to wipe it out, she's felt a connection to Nate that she can't even being to comprehend. There was no other way, Arcadia was going to be destroyed. What Nate did saved thousands of lives. 

How do you tell someone you love them, and then hold a gun on them? To Max, that overrules whether or not he intended to shoot her. 

But she thinks about his hair, his eyes, his hips... A shiver rocks her body. How is she supposed to resist him second time around? 

Across the lawn, a figure becomes visible next to the totem pole, and a lump forms in Max's throat. 

_Maxine, my little bird_. She can hear him say. _My perfect, little girl._

And she knows she will fail. 


End file.
